Hello fellow travellers.
DH and I will be attending a conference in Quebec City July 10-13, 2011.
In Oct 2004 we visited New England and loved this area, especially Bar Harbor (where we only stayed two nights)
In 2008 we visited BC and Alberta which was also very beautiful.
We will have around 4 weeks and I am looking for suggestions as to an itinerary that includes at least Mt. Desert Island (for longer) and obviously Quebec City.
I have been reading suggested itineraries (but many are for shorter periods of time) and wondering just how much to fit in? We don't want to be on the move every day.
Places that have piqued my interest from reading here include Nova Scotia, PEI, Newfoundland, Montreal and of course Nigara Falls but I understand that all of that is probably a little too ambitious!
Coming from a very dry part of the world we love coastal and lake scenery and we are both into photography and walking (not climbing necessarily!)
We could fit conference in to beginning or end of trip or even in the middle depending on the route we take.
We hope to be using some Qantas FF points whcih probably means making it to NYC on points but could go on from there to wherever appropriate I guess ... We like driving but I have just realised there may be a problem picking up in the States and dropping off in Canada maybe?
We also love self catering accommodation and previously have booked in to three different weekly rentals whilst away for a month. I could see us in a waterfront cottage on Mt Desert Island very happily!
I hope I have given enough info for some helpful comments - just need a bit of direction to start with please.
Thanks in advance!
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Well with that amount of time I'm not sure what I would do. It's all lovely. I too love Maine but don't miss Nova Scotia, and especially Cape Breton. Read up about it and you'll see what I mean. You could easily spend a couple of weeks thereabouts, and lots less touristy than Maine. I'm sure there are self-catering options. The site novascotia.com should give you a start.
If you like wild and beautiful coastlines with tons of forests, there's also the Gaspe Penninsula, but it's huge and a bit out of the way. This is a lot of driving, by the way, so if you can get a one-way dropoff at a reasonable price, do so. Not sure about that.
One alternative would be to take a train from NYC to Montreal (nice trip I hear), then rent a car from there, but you'd still have to get by to NYC. Perhaps you could find an open jaw option? Montreal is just a few hours from Quebec City if you could fly home from there, for example.
So many options! You might be able to organize some of your thoughts at www.drivecrosscountry.net/RouteM1. At that site you might also check route J which mentions Quebec, the Gaspe, etc.
We have enjoyed the Prince Edward Island in the summer with the many walks along beaches and on the fishing piers. The temperature in July is pleasant and the water is comfortable for swimming. It seems that there are always fairs, musical events, etc during the summer -- much fun.
As mentioned above, the Cabot Trail is a "must-see" in Nova Scotia. There are numerous points where you can take a casual, non-strenuous, walk. The views are spectacular.
Suggest you save Newfoundland for a future visit as it is so expansive that two weeks are needed to do it justice.
4 weeks...what fun. I think to keep things sane but fun I'd tend to divide it into two possible modes of attack: one would be a New York/New England/Central Canada (Ontario, Quebec that is) focus... the second would be a New York to Quebec City and then zip off Atlantic Canada focus.
First route might be interesting if you want a bit more of urban experience, but certainly peppered with some lovely scenery. Some great cities are not far off: NYC, (even possibly Philadelphia), Boston, Montreal, Quebec City, Toronto, Ottawa would all be options. Niagara Falls would be feasible in this option.
The second route entails more driving and would be more if you're interested in getting right to great seafood, peaceful maritime landscapes: New York-Montreal-Quebec for your conference and then drive drive drive to hit the sights of possibly Gaspe, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and PEI.
I agree that throwing Newfoundland into the mix would be quite tricky, especially if you didn't fly there.
With 4 weeks, eastern North America is your oyster, but you'll have to make SOME decisions/cuts (not necessarily mine above). Enjoy! DANIEL
Thanks guys. Thanks to some Qantas specials this weekend I am almost ready to commit and think we will be flying into and out of Boston not NYC. We will arrive in the evening so I am thinking o'night in Boston then fly to Bar Harbor the next day - US Airways Express (Colgan Air) have a 1200 flight.
Advantage of flying straight in (rather than driving) is that this will be a Saturday and most vacation rentals commence Saturday, also last time we drove out of Boston it was a nightmare!!
So, a week on MDI somewhere? Any suggestions?
Then we will have about two weeks before we need to be in Quebec City.
How should I best allocate this time? One week in Nova Scotia? Should we stay in the one spot, looking at distances I think that may be too restrictive?
If we had time up our sleeve and just decided to wing it re accommodation, would that be too risky at this time of the year (late June/early July)?
Any thoughts much appreciated.
If it were me I'd wing it - having reservations is restrictive, especially when you aren't sure what you'll find of special interest that might make you want to stay an extra day or two. For instance, the last time we took the Cabot Trail we delayed the ride for two days because there was so much fog that we would not have been able to enjoy the views.
The crowds build up in July.
FYI, July 1 is Canada Day with many celebrations throughout Canada. The largest fireworks display in the Maritimes is at Charlottetown, PEI. There're also musical events (too loud for our ears) in C'town at the same time. Much fun! The rest of the island is rather quiet.